History is Now @ The Hayward - ABSENCE
A short way into the History is Now Exhibition at the Hayward Gallery there is some work by Lucia Nogueira which the labelling describes as having a “preternatural potency”. I like this. But due to the context and positioning (stuck in a corner) the chances of you feeling this effect in the gallery are pretty slim. But hey it says it on the label so that’s ok. This is not to say that the original work does not have this preternatural potency but in this context it is there as a signifier of the actual work. Which is a pretty amazing stunt to pull off, you know having the original thing as a symbol of itself. Nogueira’s work is not about metaphor because it is metaphor and both inhabits and creates a realm free of the “mind forged manacles” of the Newtonian occident. In case you were wondering (and I certainly was) preternatural is like supernatural but having an earthly although extremely unlikely explanation – freak of nature. So this work serves as a reminder of what we are missing ...